Design and features With an even more solid, dense build and a more traditional control layout than its predecessor, the E-P5 feels extremely streamlined to shoot with. Unlike the E-P3, it has front and back dials, as well as increased customizability. I like most of the changes.

On top are a front control dial, an assignable Fn button, and a mode dial with the usual manual, semimanual, and automatic modes, plus Art Filters and the Photo Story feature introduced in the Olympus XZ-10 (it lets you select different aspect ratios of photos to shoot, which the camera automatically loads into a multiphoto template). On the back is another adjustment dial, plus four-way navigation/button controls for exposure compensation, focus area, drive mode, and flash options. Beneath the record button, a two-position lever changes the dial operations dependent upon shooting mode. For instance, in shutter-priority mode the lever toggles the dial functions between exposure compensation and shutter speed or ISO and white balance. You have some limited control over how the functions are assigned.

Although I initially thought I'd object to the fixed, shallow grip -- on the E-P3 you had the option to easily replace the shallow grip with a more pronounced one --the bigger annoyance turned out to be the navigation button control. It's just a little too small and the ring just a little too thin; enough that I repeatedly hit left when I was trying for down or down when I was trying for right. I also wish the flash tilted back for bounce control.

While the E-P5 has a touch screen, you don't really operate the camera with it. In advanced modes you use it for touch focus, touch shutter, or to initiate Wi-Fi, and in iAuto mode you use it to adjust the sliders.

Olympus takes an interesting approach to wireless connectivity, incorporating QR codes for quick Wi-Fi setup rather than NFC. When you bring up the connection on the camera it presents a QR code that you capture with the OI.Share app on your device, and the app automatically configures the connection. It's a clever, inexpensive solution to setup on devices without NFC, but it still has some rough edges. For instance, even after you've configured it, every time you initiate Wi-Fi on the camera it pops up that same QR code screen and leaves it there, at least on iOS. It really should tell you that you have to go into your Wi-Fi settings and select the camera's SSID. (Part of that is iOS' fault, though.) My iPad repeatedly asked for a camera password, which the folks at Olympus couldn't replicate. And the Android app running on the HTC One couldn't even get a lock on the QR code to scan it.

The app allows you to use your device as a basic remote control (focus, self-timer, and shutter), import photos from the camera, apply Art Filters or add stamps to any photo on the device, and geotag photos.

Other notable camera features include focus peaking, time-lapse, and an intervalometer. For a complete accounting of the E-P5's features and operation, download the PDF manual.

Conclusion With a nice shooting design and solid build, extremely good photo quality in decent lighting, and some of the fastest performance we've seen in its class, the Olympus PEN E-P5 has a lot to recommend it. I think I still prefer the photo quality of the Sony Alpha NEX-6, which is cheaper and more compact with its built-in viewfinder, but the overall package of the E-P5 comes pretty close.